Come To Me Sweetly
by Goddess Isa
Summary: Buffy needs rescuing from icky, icky, icky Riley. Will Angel make it in time? And what else is going to go down in Sunnydale for Valentine's Day?


TITLE: Come To Me Sweetly  
AUTHOR: Goddess Isa  
EMAIL: goddessisa@aol.com  
SUMMARY: Buffy needs rescuing from icky, icky, icky Riley. Will Angel make it in time? And what else is going to go down in Sunnydale for Valentine's Day?  
SPOILER: Everything from S4 and S1 ANGEL but especially Goodbye, Iowa and I've Got You Under My Skin  
DISTRIBUTION: Sandee, of course - My site - http://planetslaythis.homestead.com - Crystal and Butterfly if they want it - A Soul's Redemption - Anyone else - sure, just email me & lmk where it's going - I like seeing my name in print =)  
FEEDBACK: Please, I'd hate to have to Slay for it. =P  
RATING: TV-14  
DISCLAIMER: Joss owns the characters. Joss is the man. Damn the man. The beautiful song (would I be me if I didn't use a song?!?!) I used is by Live.  
DEDICATION: The person who supplied me with this kick-ass challenge, Ryan. Go you g.   
  
  
  
Willy's eyes widened when Riley grabbed Buffy and held her down. He'd never seen anyone treat the Slayer like that. She wasn't one to take shit but there she was, lettin' him be boss.   
  
"Angel wouldn't like this," he mumbled.   
  
"Don't!" Buffy hit him just under his left eye. She was rubbing her arm when Riley grabbed her and pushed her up against the bar.   
  
"Listen to me!" he thundered before slapping her.   
  
Willy slowly backed out of the bar and ran through the rear entrance. He jumped in his shitty pickup truck and took off for LA, runnin' every light and breaking every speed limit.   
  
When he reached Angel Investigations, he entered and heard voices in the office, so he moved further back.   
  
In an office he assumed was Angel's, Cordelia Chase was trying to force him and a British man to eat some brown goo in paper bowls she held.   
  
"They're just brownies!" she insisted. "Brownie pudding, but brownies!"   
  
"Angel?" he asked.   
  
He instantly was on the defensive. "Willy. What are you doing here?"   
  
"It's Buffy. Someone's hurting her."   
  
Instantly, Angel was following Willy to his shitty truck and taking all the details into mind.   
  
"Want me to drive?" he asked Angel. "I got here in an hour from Sunnydale."   
  
"Yeah, but we've gotta make one little stop first."   
  
"Where?"   
  
"The LAPD."   
  
"Nah, Angel, you gotta understand about me. I'm--"   
  
"It's not for you. I just need some help."   
  
  
*****   
  
  
"You want *what*?" Kate demanded. "And I told you that all bets between us are off."   
  
"Look. You know I've saved a lot of lives since I moved to LA."   
  
"And scared the shit out of me not to mention......"   
  
"What?" he arched an eyebrow.   
  
"Nothing," she shook her head, cursing herself for wanting him so much. She opened her desk drawer and took out a letter opener. She aimed it at his heart. "Don't move."   
  
"That won't kill me."   
  
"It'll slow you down. Now what's the name?"   
  
"Riley Finn."   
  
She set the opener against a paper tray on her desk so that it stood straight up and began looking through the computer. "I shouldn't even be doing this," she muttered. "You owe me big."   
  
"I saved your life. More than once."   
  
She grumbled but continued the search.   
  
"Oh my God," she mumbled, her face paling.   
  
"What?" Angel demanded.   
  
She stood up and turned the monitor. "Come have a look for yourself."  
  
Angel came and look and mumbled something in Gaelic. "Thank you."   
"Angel--"   
  
He stopped in front of her desk and leaned over to hug her. "Thank you so much. I've gotta get to Buffy."   
  
As he left, Kate remained in a funny position leaned over her desk for the longest time. When she finally went to sit back in her chair, it wasn't in the right spot and her foot hit one of its wheels, pushing it back and her forward. She landed on her desk, the letter opener piercing her right through the heart.   
  
  
*****   
  
  
Angel hopped out of Willy's shitty vehicle and stormed into his bar. Sure enough, Buffy was still taking a beating, both verbal and physical from Fish Boy.   
  
"Don't you ever talk back to me again!" he yelled as he hit her. "You hear?"   
  
"I hear you." Angel said before coming at him full-force, vamping out. He knocked Riley down and they began rolling around the floor together, exchanging punches - lame ones from Riley, bone shattering ones from Angel.   
  
"Angel?" Buffy asked, confused.   
  
"You been takin' his shit all this time?" Willy handed her a napkin and an ice pack.   
  
She blinked through the tears and let Willy lead her to a booth where she could sit down. "Willy?" she asked. "How long have I been here?"   
  
"About two and a half hours, give or take." he shrugged.   
  
"Where'd Angel come from?"   
  
"LA."   
  
"No....." she shook her head.   
  
"I went to get him."   
  
Weak and bloody as she was, she punched him. Then she set the ice on her hand and said sincerely, "Thank you."   
  
"If that's how you show your thanks, I'm better off on your bad side." he remarked.   
  
"Willy, the knife!" Angel yelled.   
  
Willy pulled it from inside his coat and tossed it. Angel caught it expertly and drove it into Riley's heart.   
  
"Riley!" Buffy cried but she didn't move.   
  
The demon shook and black foam came out of his mouth. Thick black gunk came from his heart and Angel stepped away from it, not wanting to be anywhere near it.   
  
"Got any Holy Water?" he asked Willy.   
  
"Under the counter." he mumbled.   
  
Angel leapt over the bar and grabbed it, opening the bottle and pouring it generously over the pool of black crap that had once been Riley's body. It turned to ice and Angel nodded, satisfied. Then he flew to Buffy.   
  
"Are you okay?" he took the cloth she was holding and dabbed at her injuries.   
  
"Angel?" she blinked a few times and then it was like she'd come out of a trance. "Oh my God! The baby!" she met his eyes and put her hands on his shoulders. "Angel, you have to get me to the hospital. I have to make sure the baby's okay."   
  
"Baby?" Angel and Willy both demanded.   
  
"Please." she begged him. "I came here to get information from Willy and then Riley showed up and I don't remember anything else."   
  
"He used some sort of power." Willy said as he sniffed the air. "I can't identify it, but something so he could overpower her while beating her."   
  
"I'll kill him," Angel mumbled as he lifted her up and headed for the door.   
  
"You already did," Willy pointed out.   
  
"Save me the ice," Angel mumbled before disappearing with his lover.   
  
  
*****   
  
  
The ER was a mess, and it didn't get any better when Giles began phoning Buffy's friends. They were all worried (even Spike, which shocked him) but there was a strangeness between them he'd never seen before.   
  
Finally, he asked, "Are you guys okay?"   
  
"No," Spike said. "They're bloody not. The whelp over there is too busy shaggin' his pretty demon--"   
  
"Former demon." Anya corrected.   
  
"To even worry about the Slayer, and when he does, she could care less. The Watcher feels neglected 'cause she chose the bloody Initiative for her lifeline over him. And the Witch is anxious because she's the only one who knows about Buffy's pregnancy."   
  
Everyone but Angel stared at the demon.   
  
"Spike!" Willow yelled. "How do you know about that?"   
  
"Why didn't she tell me?" Giles asked, even more hurt than he was before.   
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" Xander hit Willow on the arm.   
  
"She's my friend, it's a secret." she glared at Spike. "How'd you find out?"   
  
"I can sense these things." he said indignantly.   
  
Giles arched an eyebrow at him.   
  
"Spike." Angel said, knowing his childe better than any of them ever could.   
  
"I saw the pregnancy test in her trash." he shrugged.   
  
"What were you doing going through her trash?" Anya asked.   
  
"I was lookin' for back issues of Cosmo. My subscription ran out a decade ago." he shrugged.   
  
"Who could the father be?" Anya asked. "Parker, Riley--"   
  
"It's me," Angel said solemnly.   
  
Everyone was now staring at him.   
  
He instantly felt self conscious but he felt he should tell them the truth, so he started at the beginning.   
  
"Back in November, Buffy came to LA to see me. I think she wanted to get even with me for spying on her over Thanksgiving or something. When we were arguing in my office, a demon burst in and I thought I killed it. I didn't, and when we went into the sewer to get it, I got some of its blood on me. It made me human.   
  
"At first, I didn't know what I was going to do. Buffy had stormed off because she was angry at me so I told Cordelia and Doyle first. Then I discovered chocolate and peanut butter....that's really not the important part. So I went to see her at the pier and we started kissing. We had the most amazing day and a half together, and then Doyle had a vision. I went to see the Oracles--"   
  
"You did?" Giles beamed. "I've heard so many tales of them. Are they--"   
  
"Yes." he said firmly. "It was my second visit, the first is not important. They told me that I was meant to live out the human life and die and that the Scourge was coming. The demon wasn't dead, not even close. I begged them to take my life back to save Buffy's."   
  
"You're being very vague, you realize this." Giles said. Angel nodded. "Just making sure, go on."   
  
"I went to tell Buffy everything and that we had only a few minutes together before the Oracles turned the clock back. No one would remember that day except me. I hugged her, and I kissed her, and--" he stopped and stared at Xander. "Is your hair--"   
  
"Yes." Xander rolled his eyes. "Anya did it."   
  
"I'm going to beauty school." she said. "Want me to make you blonde?"   
  
"No thanks." he turned back to Giles. "All of a sudden we were back in my office like we were when she first showed up. The demon burst in, I killed it the way the Oracles taught me and she left."   
  
"Amazing," Giles said, the smile still on his face. "This is proof that not even the Powers That Be can mess with true love. Truly remarkable."   
  
"Summers?" a nurse called. Angel and Giles both rushed to her with the others in tow.    
  
"Who are you?" she asked them.   
  
"Father," Giles said at the same time Angel said "Husband,".   
  
"Whatever." the nurse shrugged. "She's gonna be all right. Her cuts are being stitched and she'll be sore for awhile, but she's fine."   
  
"And the baby?" Angel asked, his heart practically in his throat.   
  
"It pulled through. Pretty amazing considering the beating she took. Must be some strong muscles that girl has."   
  
"You have no idea," Angel mumbled. "Can I see her?"   
  
"Only for a minute. I'll show you  
  
"I'll come back," Angel promised Giles and followed the nurse.   
  
Giles turned around and made sure everyone had heard the good news. They began exchanging hugs and Spike hugged a little too tightly with Willow. When his hands started roaming, she jumped away. "What was that?!" she demanded.   
  
"You have a nice ass, Red." he complimented. "Whadda ya say we get together some night and compare? You're pretty pale, I'm pretty pale--"   
  
"Deal." she said. "Now drop it." her face was as red as her hair.   
  
Spike nodded and smiled smugly at the Watcher before sitting down and reading the issue of Cosmo from the hospital magazine rack.   
  
  
*****   
  
  
Angel entered Buffy's small hospital room slowly, unsure of what she was going to say.   
  
"Angel, come here." she said with a smile. "I have to apologize before we say anything else. I never should've left LA the way I did. And I wanted to turn right around and come back, I did, but I couldn't. I was punishing you for leaving and hurting me last spring. Stupid and immature, I know, but I couldn't help it. And I wanted to come back another day, it's just that....as soon as I got home I started having all these dreams. I could feel you making love to me, Angel. We were doing all these amazing things and I *know* it was more than just a dream. And when I found out I was pregnant, I decided to have the baby and keep it from you forever.   
  
"I know that's horrible," she went on. "But I've never been more hurt in my life. And when I started sort of seeing Riley, I realized that maybe I could con him into thinking the child was his if we slept together."   
  
"So you did sleep with him." Angel didn't look happy.   
  
"God, Angel," she began crying. "I didn't want to. Honest, I didn't. I'm so sorry for all the things I've done that I can never take back. I'm sorry I was ever distant with you because I truly think that's part of the reason you left, you thought it was what I wanted."   
  
When he didn't argue, she knew she'd been right.   
  
"Please sit with me," she motioned towards the side of her bed and Angel came and sat beside her, taking her hands in his.   
  
"They did an ultrasound on the baby," she said happily. "He's gonna be fine."   
  
"He?" Angel asked.   
  
Buffy nodded happily. "It's a little boy. I wanna name him Joshua, if that's okay with you."   
  
"Joshua," he repeated, adjusting to it. "I think I could handle that."   
  
She beamed. "Joshua Scott Summers O'Connell."   
  
"How did you know my full name?" he asked her, surprised. He was almost positive he hadn't uttered his father's last name since the day he was turned.   
  
"Giles did some checking for me. I wanna call him Scott."   
  
"Scott," he gently ran a hand over her stomach. "I like it."   
  
"Angel, now that you know about the baby....what does this mean for us? I mean, we're sitting here naming the child and--"   
  
"I'm moving back," he said. "To be with you and the baby."   
  
"No." she shook her head. "If we're gonna be together, we're gonna do it in LA. I don't wanna stay in Sunnydale any longer than the doctor's make me."   
  
"Monday's Valentine's Day," he said. "There's a big party at the Bronze."    
  
"I know. We all have tickets."   
  
"We think alike," he pulled two out of his pocket. "I was going to send them to you so you could go with whoever you wanted."   
  
"I wanna go with you," she leaned up and kissed him. "But there's something we have to do first. Something serious."   
  
"I know. We have to take down the Initiative."   
  
"It won't be hard," she told him. "I'd been thinking of a way before all of this happened. We're gonna have to blow it up."   
  
"My thoughts exactly." Angel said. "But how can we cover our tracks?"   
  
"Easy," she shrugged. "We'll blame it on Spike."   
  
  
*****   
  
  
Two days later, Buffy was discharged from the hospital. She spent the rest of that day in bed at Angel's orders but Sunday was spent rigging the dorm that housed the Initiative for its disposal. Buffy used her credentials (that amazingly still worked) to get her into the stupid underground facility so she could plant more dynamite wherever needed. It took awhile, and a lot of hiding, but eventually she got the job done.   
  
On her way out, she saw that the door to 314 was open and that Adam was chained to a wall. There were also two bodies kissing and she smirked when she realized they were Forest and Graham.   
  
  
*****   
  
  
"You wanna do it?" Giles asked Buffy. He held the controls that would detonate the bombs.   
  
"No. I want Angel to." she took the box from Giles and handed it to her lover. He smiled at her and glanced at the clock. Ten seconds passed and then he flicked the switch.   
  
"Goodbye, Iowa." she said happily. "For good this time."   
  
  
*****   
  
  
The Bronze was busier than Hell on Valentine's Day. The big bash was really just the normal club scene with balloons and free conversation hearts at every table. Buffy was happy that Live was playing, they were one of her favorite bands and had several songs that were great for dancing to with Angel.   
  
She pulled him out onto the floor during Lightning Crashes and smiled at him. "I love you."   
  
"I love you. You look beautiful."   
  
She smiled and glanced down at her backless red and silver dress and smirked. "I'm glad I got to wear it at least once. Another couple months and I won't fit into *anything*."   
  
"You'll still be beautiful," Angel said.   
  
"Happy Valentine's Day." she said before resting her head on his chest.   
  
"Happy Valentine's Day, Buffy." he returned.   
  
They danced for a few songs and when Buffy sensed that her favorite was coming, she brought Angel to the front of the club so he could really hear the words as they danced.   
  
  
//The way you're bathed in light  
  
Reminds me of that night  
  
God laid me down into your rose garden of trust  
  
  
And I was swept away  
  
With nothin' left to say  
  
Some helpless fool  
  
Yeah I was lost in a swoon of peace  
  
You're all I need to find  
  
So when the time is right  
  
Come to me sweetly, come to me  
  
Come to me   
  
  
Love will lead us, all right  
  
Love will lead us, she will lead us  
  
Can you hear the dolphin's cry?  
  
See the road rise up to meet us  
  
It's in the air we breathe tonight  
  
Love will lead us, she will lead us   
  
  
Oh yeah, we meet again  
  
It's like we never left   
  
Time in between was just a dream  
  
  
Did we leave this place?  
  
This crazy fog surrounds me  
  
You wrap your legs around me  
  
All I can do to try and breathe  
  
Let me breathe so that I  
  
So we can go together   
  
  
Love will lead us, all right  
  
Love will lead us, she will lead us  
  
Can you hear the dolphin's cry?  
  
See the road rise up to meet us  
  
It's in the air we breathe tonight  
  
Love will lead us, she will lead us   
  
  
Life is like a shooting star  
  
It don't matter who you are  
  
If you only run for cover, it's just a waste of time  
  
We are lost 'til we are found  
  
This phoenix rises up from the ground  
  
And all these wars are over   
  
  
Love will lead us, all right  
  
Love will lead us, she will lead us  
  
Can you hear the dolphin's cry?  
  
See the road rise up to meet us  
  
It's in the air we breathe tonight  
  
Love will lead us, she will lead us\\   
  
  
Buffy pulled Angel towards her for a kiss and they didn't move from that spot until the janitor kicked them out so he could clean the club hours later.


End file.
